


Shelter

by Missy1978



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Mutual Pining, Role Reversal, SanSan Secret Santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:01:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28245846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Missy1978/pseuds/Missy1978
Summary: Due to a freak hunting accident, Prime Minister Robert Baratheon is in the hospital, and unable to fulfill his commitments. In his place, Minister of Defense Sandor Clegane is appointed acting PM and has assumed his duties. It should be as easy (and boring) as that; until Sandor finds out who is on his security detail.
Relationships: Sandor Clegane/Sansa Stark
Comments: 5
Kudos: 59





	Shelter

**Author's Note:**

  * For [@thedesignateddriver](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=%40thedesignateddriver).



> A 2020 Sansan Secret Santa present for @thedesignateddriver whose prompt was "shelter from harm" I ended up going down a weird rabbit hole, but I hope you like it.
> 
> Also, apologies to GRRM; I took poetic license with some of the vows.

__

_"whatever you would have me be. I will shield your back and keep your counsel and give my life for yours, if need be. I will shelter you from harm; I swear it by the old gods and the new.”_

**Sandor**

Sandor Clegane stood in his office looking out the window; he could not believe it, he was acting Prime Minister. How could this happen? Well, he knew how it happened, Robert Baratheon, the actual Prime Minister, had been gored by a wild boar in a hunting accident. He was in the hospital. Robert would make a full recovery; but until then, Sandor, as the current Minister of Defense, would run the country. 

Sandor shook his head in disgust. He had not been elected by the people, nor would they have, had they been given the option. Retired military, foul-mouthed, scarred; he was much better at dealing with troop movements and sieges. He’d seen the type of glad-handing that Robert had to do; smiling, backslapping, attending galas; that was definitely not Sandor’s scene. This would be a nightmare: for him, the country. It would probably set back relations with their allies for decades. Hopefully it would just be a few weeks, and he could keep his head down and not step on too many toes. He hoped so anyway. 

Sandor spun around when his office door burst open. His close friend and the head of Security, Bronn Blackwater, stood in the doorway breathing heavily. 

“what are you doing? Get away from the window” he bellowed. 

Sandor looked at him in confusion “why? I always stand here when I’m thinking” 

“yea, but usually you’re not the acting head of the most powerful country in the seven kingdoms when you do that. That’s all I’d need, Baratheon taken down by a boar, and you picked off standing at your window. Now get the fuck away from there” 

Sandor sighed “fine” and sat down at his desk “happy now?” 

“not really, we need to talk about your personal security team” Bronn replied as he collapsed in the seat in front of the desk. 

“what security team?” 

“exactly. You got away with not having one before. Robert agreed to it because you're retired military, and can basically take care of yourself. But that was then; now you don’t have a choice” 

Sandor groaned “oh for fuck's sake, what do you have in mind?’ 

“well, we have a couple of suits that can escort you during the day and any evening commitments you have to attend, and a driver; but we need to talk about your personal life and off-hours” 

“what personal life? Look at me: I’m scarred, ugly as fuck, mean as a hound, and work way too many hours. I don’t have a personal life” 

Bronn smirked “well maybe being the acting PM won’t be the worst thing to happen to you then” 

Sandor tilted his head, confused “what do you mean?” 

Bronn’s smirk morphed into a toothy grin “well, one of the things you’re going to need to do is fill in for Robert at all his social commitments, and believe me, he has them every night. It would be easier if you had a date for those events” Bronn held up his hand to Sandor when it was obvious that Sandor was going to interrupt “let me finish. I know you’re not seeing anyone special, and I also know the type of women you do see” 

Sandor flushed at that statement, he was a man after all, and he had needs; the type of woman he ‘saw’ to take care of those needs would definitely NOT be an appropriate date for the acting PM. They usually just scratched an itch, that was all. Realizing that Bronn was still speaking, Sandor refocused his attention back to the conversation. “what did you just say?” he growled. 

“I said, we’ve assigned an agent to go undercover as your long-term girlfriend. Until this morning, no one cared about your personal life, no one even thought about your private life, so no one would know if you were seeing someone or not. She will attend social functions with you, oh, and she’s moving in with you; separate bedrooms of course. The two of you will debut tonight at the annual King’s Landing holiday toys for tots kick-off.” 

Sandor growled “what the fuck, this is ridiculous, why do I need a girlfriend, I’ve never needed one before, why now? Can’t I just go to these things solo? Robert did half the time, Cersei never wanted to go” 

Bronn sat forward “and what happened at those events? Robert arrived alone, did he leave alone?” 

“well, no” Sandor admitted.

“exactly. Is it so terrible to want to have a rest from extracting the PM from delicate situations?” 

Sandor 'fake' whined “I don’t know why I have to behave when Robert didn’t” 

Bronn grinned “Don’t speak too soon, I think you’re going to thank me in the end” 

“why’s that?” 

“wait until you meet your new girlfriend. Actually, not meet, you already know her” 

Sandor frowned “I do? Who is it?” 

“Sansa Stark” 

Sandor sat back stunned. Sansa Stark, daughter of Ned Stark, Minister of Finance; what the fuck? The most beautiful woman Sandor had ever seen in his life? The ex-girlfriend of that twat Joffrey Baratheon? The woman he'd harbored feelings for, for years? Why would she be willing to act as his girlfriend? Wait a minute, did Bronn say she was an agent? What the fuck? Sandor looked up at Bronn in confusion. 

“I know, it’s perfect, right? You have questions, I get it. Yes, she’s an agent, she has been for years; in fact, she was Joffrey’s guard until he fired her because she wouldn’t ‘put-out’ for him. He thought if she posed as his girlfriend, that meant she’d have sex with him too. A well-placed kick in the balls proved to him otherwise. She has the perfect cover, her father is a high ranking official too; so, of course you mingle in the same circles. As we speak, she’s moving her stuff into your condo; I would say, I hope you don’t mind, but I actually don’t care if you do. She’ll stay there until Robert is recovered and back in the office, and you go back to being just the Minister of Defense. At that point, the two of you can ‘break-up’ and go your separate ways.” 

Sandor blew out a deep breath, maybe, just maybe, being the acting Prime Minister wouldn’t be the worst thing that ever happened to him. If he got to look at Sansa Stark every evening, spend time with her, get to know her better, maybe hold her hand or put his arm around her at an event, if he was really lucky kiss her on the cheek; it would definitely be worth it, even if they were just acting. Sandor grinned at Bronn “well, anything I can do for my country” 

“Somehow I thought you’d feel that way. So listen, get out of here, go home, get ready for tonight. Your car and driver are at the entrance, and your new security detail is waiting for you. They will brief you in the car about shifts and routes and a million other things. Sansa will be waiting at the condo, and she can brief you about all the other stuff. Have fun at the gala tonight” 

**Sansa**

Sansa finished emptying the contents of her suitcase into the chest of drawers. She was excited about her new assignment, if nothing else, she’d get to spend time with Sandor Clegane. Up Close and personal time with Sandor, she thought with a blush. She’d known Sandor for years, but never had the chance to really spend quality time with him and really get to know him. She was going to rectify that situation now! 

As a young agent on her first undercover assignment as Joffrey’s girlfriend, she had seen Sandor almost daily when he came to the residence for meetings with Robert. This was early on, right after Robert had come to power; and Sandor, still in the military, had commanded the forces that had squashed the insurrections opposed to Robert’s leadership. 

Sandor wouldn't have known (until today anyway) that she was even an agent, he probably assumed that Sansa was just dating Joffrey. It made sense; Robert and Ned were best friends, why shouldn’t their kids date? But actually, Sansa couldn't stand Joffrey. What a total pompous ass. But she learned a lot on that job, and had even managed not to blow her cover when she had to physically assault Joffrey when he refused to take no for an answer to his ongoing demands for a fuck. She was relieved when he whined to his father that he wanted a new agent. She hoped Margaery fared better than she had. Sansa snapped out of her daydream when she heard the door open and shut. 

“Honey, I’m home” she heard in Sandor’s raspy baritone 

“I’m in the guestroom Sweetheart” she replied with a giggle 

Sansa looked up to see Sandor standing in the doorway grinning at her “so you drew the short straw and got stuck with me, eh?” 

Sansa grinned, she had volunteered, no begged, Bronn for the assignment “It was either me or Gendry” 

Gendry Waters was famous as being one of the many products of Robert Baratheon's misspent youth. Sandor raised his eyebrow in surprise; Gendry was an agent too? How much happened in King's Landing that he wasn't privy to?

“well, Gendry is a really good-looking guy, I bet _that_ would have set some tongues wagging” Sandor deadpanned. 

Sansa giggled “Let me just finish up in here, then I’ll meet you in the kitchen and we can go over schedules, okay?” 

“sure, I’m going to make a sandwich, Bronn rushed me out of the office so quickly that I didn’t get anything to eat, and I’m starving. Do you want anything?” 

“sure, a sandwich would be great, I’ll just be a few more minutes” 

Once Sandor was out of sight, Sansa took a big breath, held it, then blew it out. Trying, but not really succeeding, to calm herself. Sandor was everything she was looking for in a man: tall, muscled, handsome (even with the scars), and the consummate military leader. She was going to be professional of course, but if she could get to know Sandor better, she was going to do that too. Sansa stowed her suitcase under the bed and made her way to the kitchen. 

“I hope chicken salad is okay, it was the only thing in the fridge, I’m never usually home for lunch” 

Sansa laughed “so the rumor of your love of chicken is true? It’s fine, I brought Robert’s calendar, we’re going to be busy for the next several days” 

“Ugh, what sort of mindless shit are we in for?” 

“Uhm, the holiday toys for tots kick-off is tonight, Robert…well you, have a ribbon cutting tomorrow night at a women’s shelter, there’s a dinner thing with a bunch of business people who want to invest in infrastructure AND we end the week with the Santa Paws animal shelter fundraiser. It looks like you get Sunday off. Who knew Robert was so sought after” 

“I’m sure he filled his calendar so he didn’t have to spend time alone for Cersei” Sandor replied with a snort. 

“Can’t say as I blame him, but now you have to fill in” 

“am I speaking at any of these?” 

“yea, I have your speeches too, but don’t worry, it’s the normal crap that people say at these things” 

Sandor pinched the bridge of his nose, ugh, he hated public speaking, he hated people staring at him, probably wondering where he got his scars. “so how does this work? I’ve never had a fake girlfriend” 

Sansa could tell he was uneasy “I guess it works like a real girlfriend, we go places together as a couple, I can work with as much or as little physical affection in public as you think is appropriate" 

“Can’t say I have much experience with that either” Sandor replied blushing bright pink. 

Sansa smiled “we can play it by ear, see what feels comfortable at the time, and go for it; how does that sound?” 

Sandor nodded “so if we get asked, how long have we been together?” 

Sansa checked her notes “It looks like the last time you attended an official function was nine months ago for the Hibernian Society gala, and you went alone. You haven’t been seen with a woman, at least officially, since before that; so how about we say eight months? That way it wouldn’t be too quick that we're living together. What do you think?” 

“I guess that would work, so what do we do now?” 

“I guess get ready for the gala?" Sansa blew out a loud breath "Okay, I have a weird question, so don’t laugh. Do you want to match?” 

“Match? What the fuck does that mean?” 

Sansa took another deep breath “do you want to match your tie to my dress?” 

Sandor scrunched up his face “people do that?” 

“Sometimes, I guess it depends on the event, how serious they are. I don’t know, it’s something I've had to do in the past, so I have ties that match my dresses. If you wanted to, you could wear one.” 

Sansa blushed and looked down at her feet, what a stupid question to ask, it wasn’t as if they were going to a high school formal, for fuck's sake. She felt like a dope even asking him, she was sure he’d laugh at her. When she finally raised her eyes to look at Sandor, he was staring at her with an inscrutable expression. She prepared for the worse. 

“what color were you going to wear tonight?” 

“blue” 

Sandor sighed “well go get it, then let’s see if I have a suit to go with it” 

Relieved, Sansa grinned and scurried down the hall to the guestroom. Holding a midnight blue tie in her hand, she wandered into Sandor’s bedroom. She studiously avoided gaping at the massive bed against the wall. Sandor was standing in front of the closet with his hands on his hips. 

“Well, it looks like we shouldn’t have a problem, since it looks like ALL my suits are black or dark grey. I never realized until right now how little color is in my wardrobe. Now that I have a young, beautiful girlfriend, maybe colored ties will be my new thing.” he commented side-eyeing Sansa. 

“Oh boy, this is going to be fun, I’m going to torture you with color. I definitely think for the ribbon cutting at the shelter we’re going to wear pink!” she chuckled. 

“fuck; I should’ve kept my mouth shut” 

***** 

Unlike any other event where he would just slink in a side door, tonight Sandor had to walk the red carpet and make an entrance. He was grateful that he and Sansa had the conversation about their so-called relationship. Now that he was the acting PM the press seemed to have a field day with his personal life. When they arrived, the press had snapped picture after picture of them, all wanting to know about the nature of their relationship. They were relentless. 

“Minister Clegane, Miss Stark: How long have you been dating? Where did you meet? Is this serious? Will you be setting a date soon?” All their questions blended is a cacophony of noise that Sandor could barely tolerate. 

Just when Sandor was about to blow his stack and curse out the lot of them, Sansa had stepped in. She squeezed his hand and whispered in Sandor's ear "Don't worry, I got this; I'll always shelter you from harm" she stepped in front of him and replied “Not that it’s any of your business, but, Sandor and I have been together for a little less than a year, and it’s very serious; but we like to keep our private life private, so until now I haven’t attended any events with Sandor, but I will be in the future. Now if you don’t mind, Minister Clegane is speaking this evening and we don’t want to be late” with that, Sansa turned and pulled Sandor by the hand into the venue. 

Sandor blinked his eyes a couple of times, feeling a sting, no one had ever sheltered him from anything. Clearing his throat, Sandor spoke in a low voice “That was brilliant, if I didn’t know better, I would think I’m in a relationship” 

“my pleasure, now make sure you don’t contradict me if you get cornered by someone” 

“I won’t Little Bird” 

“Little Bird?” 

“Ah shit, you peeped those courtesies so nicely, just like a little bird, that was all I could think of. You don’t mind, do you? I didn’t mean any disrespect” 

“nah, it’s cute. I may make you call me that in public, all part of our backstory” 

Sandor’s heart thumped painfully in his chest. Until that moment, he didn’t realize how much he was missing in his life. He wanted the backstory and the story going on right now to all be true. Maybe he was wrong, maybe this was the worst thing that could ever happen to him. 

*****

Sandor and Sansa entered the condo late that evening, Sansa pulling her hair out of the intricate up-do she’d crafted, and stepping out of her heels as soon as the front door swung shut. 

“ugh, that feels much better” she said with a grimace 

“the shoes or the hair?” Sandor quipped 

“both” she replied with a chuckle 

“would you like a drink? I stuck to water all night because I didn’t want my first public event as the Acting PM to end in a brawl, and after what we went through, I could use one” 

“sure, but I need to get out of this dress first. How about we change and meet in the kitchen in 10 minutes?” 

“sounds like a plan, _Little Bird_ ” Sandor replied with a smirk. 

Sansa punched Sandor in the bicep and moved past him to the guest room to change. The evening had gone remarkable well in Sansa’s opinion. There was no question that everyone there was convinced she and Sandor were a couple. That should make her job much easier in the coming weeks if people were not surprised or suspicious that she was constantly with him. 

Sansa quickly stripped out of her clothing and threw on a pair of leggings and a sweatshirt, and pulled her hair in a sloppy bun on top of her head. Entering the kitchen, she wasn’t surprised that Sandor was already there, pouring whiskey into two low tumblers; dressed in a pair of low slung sweatpants and a snug black tee shirt that left nothing to Sansa's imagination.

“I hope you like whiskey, it’s the only thing I have in the house right now” 

“I’m from the north, of course I like whiskey. How do you think we keep warm during the nine months of winter?” Sansa replied, reaching for the glass. 

Sandor raised his glass in salute “to the best fake girlfriend I’ve ever had” 

Sansa grinned, sniffed the liquid in the glass then took a sip “yum, this is good, and just what I needed after tonight. The rest of the events this week should be much easier, now that we’re established as a couple. Less questions and scrutiny” 

Sandor took a large swig of his drink and cleared his throat “Good. Hey, can I ask you a question?” 

“sure” 

“when you said that you’d always shelter me from harm, what did you mean by that?” 

“Oh, I thought you knew, it’s part of the oath I took to become an agent” Sansa sat up straighter and recited the ancient words “ _whatever you would have me be. I will shield your back and keep your counsel and give my life for yours, if need be. I will shelter you from harm; I swear by the old gods and the new_. It’s from the time of Sers and sworn shields. Every agent takes it.” 

“so, what will sheltering me from harm involve?” 

“well, bullets obviously. Kidnapping, knives, bombs; but for you specifically… the press and maybe aggressive women too, there were a lot of them giving you the eye tonight. I’m going to have to stay on my toes” Sansa gulped the last of her drink down and stood up. “well, I need to do one more sweep and go to bed. See you in the morning?” 

“sure, goodnight Sansa” 

***** 

**Saturday Night**

Sandor finished knotting his tie for the evening, emerald green tonight; it had been a long week, but Sandor had no regrets. He spent most days filling in at meetings for Robert, most of which were deathly boring. That was something he wouldn’t miss when he went back to his permanent position. The evenings though, they were spent with Sansa, and it was the happiest Sandor had been in his entire life. 

The only uncomfortable situation had been earlier in the day when he attended a budget meeting with the Minister of Finance, Sansa’s father Ned Stark. Sandor assumed that Ned was aware of his daughter’s career and current protectee, but he was still nervous when he entered the conference room. 

_Ned stood as Sandor entered “Acting Prime Minister, or should I say potential future son-in-law?” he smirked “How are things going? I’ve seen more pictures of you in the paper this week then…well…ever. I particularly liked the pink tie at the ribbon cutting, I assume it wasn’t your first choice?" Sandor snorted and shook his head "It looks like my daughter keeping you on your toes” he concluded with a twinkle in his eyes._

_“Ned, great to see you. She’s a firecracker that one.”_

_“you should meet her younger sister; Arya makes Sansa look like a quiet, demure lady”_

_“well so far Sansa has been very lady like, other than when she’s dealing with the press, which I totally appreciate. Hopefully for her sake, this farce will only go on another couple of weeks, and Robert will be out of the hospital and back to work”_

_“well, she talked to her mother last night, and it sounds like she’s enjoying herself, she likes your condo anyway. So what event is tonight?”_

_“uhm, animal shelter fund raiser”_

_“ut-oh, you might be in trouble, Sansa may try and convince you to adopt a shelter pet. It’s one of her favorite causes”_

_“well, she sees how I live, and how little time I spend at home. Unless there are shelter goldfish, I should be safe”_

_Ned burst out laughing “point taken; well, I guess we need to get down to work, eh?”_

Sandor snapped back to the present when he heard Sansa moving around in the kitchen. He quickly straightened his tie, took one last look at himself in the mirror, grimacing at what he saw. He exited the bathroom, grabbed his suit jacket off the bed and made his way to the kitchen. Sandor pulled up short when he saw Sansa standing next to the kitchen island, rummaging through her purse. She took his breath away. The green dress, with her red hair and pale skin made his cock stand at attention. 

If she was his real girlfriend, they definitely would not make it to the fundraiser tonight. If she was his real girlfriend, he would already be bending her over the kitchen island. The trouble was, she wasn’t his real girlfriend. 

Sansa looked up, noticed him standing there and grinned “hey Sandor, you look great, the tie looks nice with your suit” 

“you don’t look so bad yourself” 

Sansa giggled “you know, I think I may need to take you shopping when this is all done. I think colored ties _are_ your new thing. I don’t want you going back to boring black and grey when you go back to doing your regular job.” 

“we’ll have to talk about that later, I’m not convinced I could pull them off if you weren’t standing next to me drawing all the attention away from my ugly mug” 

Sansa’s eyes softened “well, I definitely think you could pull them off” Sansa smiled and clapped her hands “you ready to go save some shelter animals? Maybe we could find you one too.” 

Sandor laughed “your father warned me about this, but unless you want to move in here with me and take care of it, I think shelter pets, or any pets, are not in my future” 

***** 

Sandor was having such a good time. Unlike most stuffy fundraisers, this one included: top shelf liquor, cute shelter animals, a silent auction, and dancing. He wasn’t usually one to dance, but Sansa had insisted, and he realized he couldn’t deny her anything. As they twirled around the ballroom; he had moved his hands from loosely resting on her hips, to splayed across her back when she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him in close. 

“remember we’re supposed to be a couple” she muttered in his ear “we shouldn’t dance like two strangers” then, to Sandor’s shock and utter delight she rolled up on her toes and kissed him on the cheek. Pulling back, she smiled the most adorable and mischievous grin at him. Sandor searched her eyes, and seeing the sincerity and acceptance there, he whispered 

“can I kiss you, for real?” 

“I wish you would, for real” 

Sandor leaned in and brushed his lips against Sansa’s. She surprised him by tilting her head and allowing him to deepen the kiss. Sandor took the opportunity to wrap his arms completely around Sansa and pull her even closer, and he swore he heard a little moan coming from the back of Sansa’s throat. Finally snapping to his senses, they were in a ballroom full of people for fuck's sake, Sandor pulled away and looked down at Sansa, who opened her eyes and looked up at him dreamily. 

“I’ve wanted to do that all week” he whispered 

“I’ve wanted you to do that since back when I was guarding Joffrey” she whispered in reply 

“yea?” 

“yea” 

“do you think we’ve been here long enough that we can make a graceful exit?” 

“I don’t care if we have or not, but let’s get out of here” Sansa replied with a grin. 

Suddenly, they heard loud voices at the entrance, and to their horror, gunshots. Sansa immediately swung into action. Unholstering the pistol strapped to her thigh, she quickly scanned the room for Sandor’s bodyguards, only to discover they’d been hit and were down. Realizing Sandor was probably the target, she looked for the nearest exit and began pushing Sandor towards it. 

“Sansa, what are you doing? I can help” 

“Sandor, from the way this appears, you’re who they’re looking for, you need to get out of here. Remember, it’s my job to shelter you from harm. Get low, stay low, and get out that door. I’ll cover you. Get to the car and have the driver take you to my apartment, he knows where it is, no one will look there. I’ll meet you when I can. We may need to plan to lay low until we can figure out what this is. Can you do that for me Sandor?” 

Sandor reluctantly nodded and crouched down and ran towards the door. He was horrified at the sights and sounds around him: screaming people, barking dogs, gunshots, breaking glass; it was total chaos. How could something like this happen? Why would something like this happen? Was it a coup? Was Robert safe? Were the other Ministers safe? 

Once in the car, Sandor immediately pulled out his phone and called Bronn, who answered on the first ring. 

“Bronn, something big is happening” 

“Sandor are you okay? There were hits all across the city, It looks like the Faceless Men were contracted by the Targaryens. They saw an opening to swoop in and overthrow the government with Robert out of commission, and are trying to mount a coup. Where’s Sansa?” 

“she’s still inside, she insisted that I leave” 

“well she’s right. What did she tell you to do?” 

“go to her apartment, she’d meet me there” 

“okay, do what she says, and tell her to call me when she gets in. We need to decide where to put you” 

“Bronn, is Ned okay?” 

“Yea, fortunately he and Cat flew home to Winterfell late this afternoon, don’t worry it’s a fortress, he’ll be fine. I spoke to him, and he knows to stay out of sight.” 

"What about Robert?"

"He had guards at the hospital, so they never got close enough to get to him, but they did get to Joffrey, he's dead, and Cersei is in critical condition"

"What about the kids?"

"Tommen and Myrcella were at the Rock, Tywin has been apprised; they'll be fine."

"Okay, I'll have Sansa call you as soon as she gets in"

*****

Sandor had been pacing the floor for what seemed like hours. He had received a call from Bronn assuring him that Sansa was okay, but he wished she'd just get here. He knew she had accompanied his bodyguards to the hospital, they were going to be okay, but they both had a long, hard road ahead of them to a full recovery. Bronn has also assured him that no one could have known this was going to happen, no one would have been able to prevent it. 

The good news was that most of the assassins had been caught or shot or at minimum, identified. They had failed. It was just a matter of time until everyone involved paid for their actions. In the meantime, Bronn told Sandor that he was going to have Sansa take him to a safehouse. To that end, Sandor had instructed Pod, his driver, to go to the condo and pack him a bag, and bring it back to the apartment; then go home and get a good night's sleep, he had earned it.

Sandor heard a key in the lock, fucking finally was all he could think. Then Sansa was barreling through the door, her green dress ripped and covered in blood; she dropped her keys, bag and coat and launched herself into his arms; wrapped her arms around his neck and groaned. Sandor caught her and squeezed her hard, he was so relieved to see her.

"Sansa, are you hurt? You're covered in blood"

Sansa pulled back to look at him, then down at herself and smirked "no, none of it is mine"

"Bronn wants you to call him as soon as you get in"

"I already talked to him, we're leaving tomorrow morning for Winterfell, until we confirm they've gotten everyone involved, including that cunt Daenerys Targaryen"

Sandor snorted "I love it when you're a hard ass"

Sansa stared up at him, her eyes softened, and she moved her hand from the back of his neck to cup his face. "I was so worried about you. I'm so sorry, I lost focus and you could have gotten killed. I let my personal feelings get in the way of me doing my job! I'm supposed to shelter you from harm, and I failed you! Can you ever forgive me?"

"Sansa, don't be sorry, I'm not. Yea we got a little distracted, but we're both okay. This was going to happen no matter who was my guard, I'm glad it was you. It's given us the chance to get to know each other better, to realize we have feelings for each other. I will NEVER regret that!" Sandor leaned down and kissed Sansa on the nose "So, we're leaving for Winterfell tomorrow? Is there anything we need to do before morning?"

Sansa grinned and rolled up on her toes "well, I have a couple of ideas" she tightened her arms around Sandor's neck and pulled him closer and kissed him hard in the mouth. Sandor stood up straight, lifting Sansa off the ground, never breaking the kiss. Sansa wrapped her legs around his waist, tilted her face and opened her mouth allowing Sandor's tongue to sweep inside. Minutes later, breathless, Sansa broke the kiss to utter "bedroom, now, down the hall on the left" then dove back into the kiss.

Sandor, never removing his mouth from Sansa's, blindly made his way down the hall, and kicked open the bedroom door. Lowering Sansa to the floor, Sandor moved his hands to cup her face. He looked at her searchingly, perhaps looking for doubt, finding none, he kissed her again. Drawing back he queried "Sansa I want you so badly right now, but since you're covered in someone else's blood, do you want to shower first?"

Sansa shot him a wicked look and reached behind her and pulled down the zipper to her dress; dropping it in a heap at her feet, she stood there in a strapless black bra and matching panties "well, I will if you join me"

Sandor, never taking his eyes off her, ripped his shirt off "Lead the way Little Bird"

**The following morning**

Sandor woke up feeling as though he'd gone 15 rounds in the ring. Looking down, he smiled at the tangle of red hair spread out across his chest. Thank the gods, it hadn't been a dream; he'd gone 15 rounds all right, but not in the boxing ring, with Sansa Stark!

\-----

_Once she dropped her dress to the floor, Sansa had turned on her heel and sprinted towards the bathroom. Sandor was in close pursuit, trying to shuck his shoes, socks, pants and boxers along the way. Sansa had already removed the last of her clothing, turned on the shower and was adjusting the temperature when he slid up behind her, wrapped his arm around her waist and kissed her under the ear and whispered_

_"I don't know how clean we'll get in there Little Bird"_

_Sansa turned, grabbed Sandor's head and pulled him into a scorching open-mouth kiss "good" was her only response. Satisfied with the water temperature, Sansa stepped in and under the showerhead to rinse herself, before turning to Sandor and holding out her hand to him. Sandor followed her into the tub and immediately pressed her against the wall and peppered her with kisses along her cheeks, lips, down her throat and collarbone._

_Sansa tipped her head back and moaned, wrapping her arms around his chest, pulling him closer and trapping his huge erection between their bodies._

_"Let me just get the blood out of my hair, then we can move to a more stable surface" Sansa whispered up to him._

_Sandor looked down at her and grinned "sure, although for the record, I'd fuck you right here, right now, covered in anything." Sansa giggled and reached for the shampoo bottle, but Sandor beat her to it "would you mind if I did this?" Sansa shook her head, and turned her back to him, giving him better access to her hair._

_Sandor poured a generous amount in his hand and started to massage it through Sansa's hair. Sansa moaned and melted back into his chest as he dug his fingers into her scalp. Sandor had never washed anyone else's hair before, he wondered if it was a thing, because his dick was definitely getting harder listening to all the little noises Sansa was making "turn around and rinse Little Bird"_

_Sansa turned and looked up at him, her blue eyes as big as saucers, as she tipped her head into the spray. Fuck she was beautiful. Sandor lowered his mouth and kissed her, relishing the feel of her mouth and her body pressed against him._

_Sansa broke the kiss "I think I'm clean enough for now, but I hope you plan on getting me dirty again" she concluded with a raised eyebrow._

_With a primal growl, Sandor turned off the water, pulled Sansa out of the tub, slung her over his shoulder and stalked back to the bedroom. Dumping Sansa on the bed, Sandor dropped to his knees, and pulled her to the edge. And without warning, he pulled her legs apart and lifted her core to his mouth: licking, swirling, sucking and flicking her clit relentlessly. He couldn't help himself, Sandor had dreamed of worshiping her like this for years. Sansa squirmed beneath him, trying to pull him up, but he was determined to make her come before he would let go._

_It could have been seconds, minutes or hours later, Sandor had no idea, all he knew was that she tasted delicious; but suddenly, with a high pitched squeal, Sansa arched her back and came harder than anything he'd ever witnessed before in his life. Gulping for air Sansa stared down at Sandor, who had finally removed his face from her apex and grinned up at her._

_"Sandor, get up here now"_

_"What do you mean?"_

_"What I mean is, that if you don't get up on this bed with me, I'm going to scream, and not in the good way"_

_Sandor stood up as Sansa scooted back up the bed, reaching the headboard, she held out her arms to him. He crawled towards her settling on top of her resting on his forearms so he wouldn't crush her._

_Sandor immediately dropped his head to place butterfly kisses in the hollow of her throat. Not looking her in the eye he blurted out "uh, Sansa?"_

_"Hmmm?"_

_Sandor finally met her eye "I don't even want to say this out loud" Sansa's eyebrows drew together in confusion "I don't have any condoms"_

_Sansa's face relaxed and she giggled "oh, that's okay, I'm on the shot. Don't worry, I've been tested, I'm clean"_

_"Aren't you worried about me?"_

_Sansa blushed and avoided his gaze uttering "how creepy would it sound if I admitted that I've seen your records? I know the last time you were with a woman and I also know the results of your last physical?" Sansa glanced at him then buried her face in his neck in mortification._

_Sandor chuckled "for the job, right?"_

_"Well, that and maybe other things too, a girl can hope after all" Sansa peeked up at him to see how Sandor took that statement._

_Sandor's eyes softened briefly at her admission, then widened with arousal. He leaned down and captured her lips again, admitting with his actions that he felt the same way. Lining up at her entrance, Sandor pushed inside Sansa's core. He'd never been inside a woman bare before. Holy shit, he thought, he had no idea what he'd been missing; but if he had to wait this long for the experience, he was glad it was with Sansa. He gave Sansa a moment to adjust to him, then slowly began to thrust into her._

_Sansa had arched as Sandor pushed into her, she had never felt so full in her life. Good full, not painful full; Sandor had done an amazing job getting her ready for him, she was sure she had never been wetter in her entire life. As he thrust into her, Sansa met every one with a thrust of her own, savoring the feel of his cock inside her. It was so big, and thick; it was hitting every spot inside her, and Sansa soon felt the burn of an oncoming orgasm._

_"Little Bird, you feel so good, I don't think I can last much longer" Sandor said with a grunt._

_Sansa, red faced and panting "I'm not going to last much longer either' with that she turned her head to the side, squeezed her eyes shut, arched her back and squeaked "oh, oh, ohhhh, Sandor"_

_Sandor felt her contract around him, and his rhythm faltered as he quickened his pace and pounded into her seeking his own release. With a roar he emptied inside Sansa, before eventually stuttering to a halt, barely remembering not to collapse on top of her. Pulling out he tipped to the side, falling on his back next to her._

_"Oh my gods, Little Bird, that was incredible. I may not be able to walk after that"_

_Sansa giggled "me neither"_

_They lay there, catching their breaths; Sandor eventually got up to go to the bathroom, returning with a wet washcloth that he gently used to clean Sansa's nether regions. Tossing it to the floor, Sandor got back in bed, scooted behind Sansa, and wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her back flush with his chest. "So what happens next Sansa?"_

_"Well I guess we try and get some sleep, we have a long drive to Winterfell tomorrow"_

_They'd made love one more time that night. Sandor woke up at about 3am to Sansa gently stroking his hand on her belly._

_"You awake?"_

_"Mmm mmm" she murmured, turning around to face him. Sansa lifted her hand to his scarred cheek and rubbed her thumb back and forth. "Can you feel that?" Sandor shook his head. "How about that?" She asked as she slid her hand around his neck and carded her fingers through his hair" Sandor smiled and nodded, bending his face down to kiss her._

_Sandor tried to roll on top of Sansa, but she put her hand on his shoulder and pushed "no, me on top this time, sit up" Sandor flashed a grin and sat up with his back against the headboard. Sansa swung her leg over his lap and settled on top of him. Grabbing his cock, she lifted herself up on her knees, lined him up, and slid down on top of him, groaning the whole way down his length._

_"Does it hurt?"_

_"Nah, it feels goooood" she answered with a smirk._

_This time, rather than the frantic pace of before, they took their time. Staring into each other's eyes, so close they could inhale each other's breath. Sandor wrapped his arms around Sansa and pulled her even closer, every part of their bodies touching as they rolled their hips in tandem. This wasn't fucking, it was making love; they both knew it. With a groan, Sandor released inside her, and leaning his forehead against her sternum he whispered "oh Little Bird, what you do to me"_

_\-----_

Sandor snapped back to the present as Sansa groaned and raised her head up from his chest. She smiled up at him and whispered "oh thank the gods, it wasn't just a dream"

"No Little Bird, that wasn't a dream. Any chance we have time to go another round?"

Sansa turned her head to look at the alarm clock in the bedside table and sighed "no, I don't think we do, we have a long ride to Winterfell, and I think we need to shower first. I don't think my parents would be too happy with us showing up smelling like a brothel"

Sandor chuckled "point taken, if I want to make a good impression on them, I need to be at my best, not a hot mess"

Sansa snapped her head up at his statement "you want to make a good impression on them?"

"Yea. I do"

"That is the sweetest, sexiest thing you could have said to me" Sansa winced as she moved off Sandor and stood up "I'll put on the coffee, you can take the first shower"

*****

Sansa stifled a yawn as she and Sandor dropped their bags in the trunk of her car. Sandor grinned at her and quipped "tired Little Bird? Late night? How about I take the first driving shift?"

"Do you mind? That would be great, I need to text my brother and talk to Bronn and my father"

"Just point me in the right direction, and I'll be good for a few hours" he replied. Sandor got behind the wheel, and Sansa led him out of her neighborhood and onto the highway north. As he drove, Sansa furiously texted on her phone "who are you talking to?"

Sansa looked up "my brother Bran, I asked him to go shopping for you."

"What? Why?"

"Have you ever been north?" Sandor shook his head "well it's fucking cold up there and you don't have heavy enough clothing. And nothing at the house will fit you, you're much bigger than my dad and brothers, so….Bran's going shopping; I told him you need some color in your life. Don't worry, he's got good taste; any color I should tell him to avoid?"

Sandor raised his eyebrow "I guess just black and grey, since I have enough stuff in those colors to last the rest of my life...how long do you think we'll be up there?"

"Well, when I spoke to Bronn last night, he told me to be ready to stay there a couple of weeks, so we'll definitely be there until after Christmas, are you okay with that?"

"Sure, I didn't have any plans for the holidays, and anything to get me out of those boring meetings." Sandor slid his eyes to Sansa "sounds like I'll have ample opportunity to make a good, or bad, impression on your parents." Sansa giggled, then leaned over the armrest and kissed Sandor on the cheek.

"My parents will be easy, you need to worry about my sister Arya" she concluded with a snort. 

*****

Sansa was right, although it only took one week for Sandor to tell Sansa that he loved her; it took two full weeks for Sandor to convince Arya not to murder him in his sleep. By week three Sandor felt as though he was officially part of the Stark pack; playing chess with Bran, rambling through the forest with Jon and Rickon to cut down a Christmas tree, drinking and talking political reform with Rob and Ned, baking Christmas cookies with Catelyn, shooting with Arya. 

During week four Sandor convinced Sansa that when everything was resolved, they should pack up their places and relocate in the north, away from the corruption of King's Landing. Finally and most importantly, week five saw Sandor and Sansa committing to their new lives in the north and to each other. On Christmas Eve, standing in front of Winterfell's weirwood tree, their family and friends looking on; Sandor and Sansa simultaneously recited their wedding vows to each other and to the old gods.

_"Father, Smith, Warrior, Mother, Maiden, Crone, Stranger; I am yours and you are mine; I will always shelter you from harm and surround you with love. From this day until the end of my days."_


End file.
